ONE Championship has been nothing short of phenomenal in 2023. Over the last six months, the organization has delivered on its promise with a streak of amazing events and an unforgettable U.S. debut – and that growth is expected to continue, according to ONE Championship Group President Hua Fung Teh.
Teh was recently featured on CNBC’s Street Signs, where he discussed ONE’s recent successes and its future. He touted the recent U.S. debut event, ONE Fight Night 10, and spoke about how it set new highs for viewership in the promotion. After stars like Demetrious Johnson, Stamp Fairtex, and Rodtang Jitmuangnon lit up the Mile High City, ONE is planning a bigger 2024 in the United States.
“So we had our first U.S. event in Denver, Colorado, a month before the Nuggets won the NBA Championship, so it was great timing. But, yeah, that was a sold out event. It broke all records in the U.S. on our streaming platform, Amazon Prime Video, and I think that event really showed us that we not only have a right to play, but we have a clear right to win in the U.S. So we are going to be having more events in the U.S. next year, and we’re also looking to expand the partnership with Amazon,” Teh said.
But America is not the only area of focus for the ever-expanding brand. ONE is branching out globally, and the Middle East is on its agenda in the near future.
The promotion has a broadcast deal with beIN Sport in the region. Already partnered with Media City Qatar, ONE recently signed another MOU with the organization to expand the partnership.
“We signed an MOU with Qatar Media City, that actually is an existing partner. So this is an extension of another MOU that we signed last year to bring our live events to Qatar. We have a 2-3 year relationship now with Qatar. QIA [Qatar Investment Authority], the sovereign wealth fund, invested in ONE. They actually led our last funding round about 18 months ago, and since then we have gotten more and more, I guess, deeply networked in the Qatari ecosystem,” Teh said.
The Apprentice: ONE Championship Edition’s second season was partly filmed in Qatar as part of the initial partnership, and the latest MOU will see the organization bring live events to Doha as soon as this year, according to Teh.
ONE’s growth is supported by strategic investments by the company. The U.S. market is a clear point of emphasis, and the success of the initial show will see the organization return with multiple events planned in 2024.
The fans who flooded Denver are part of the growth that shows ONE’s upward trajectory, per Teh.
“If you look at our revenue, if you look at everything, our metrics, everything is up and to the right. Even during the pandemic, you know, viewership and revenue were up. Assuming that march continues. And look, the sports business is one of operating leverage — once you have the asset, you have incumbency, you have the fans, it takes on a life of its own, right? There’s not much incremental cost in trying to win that incremental dollar because the asset, the brand, the popularity and the fandom, is already there, and all sports properties go through this journey,” the ONE co-founder said
